Friendly Game Night
by TheLilyoftheValley
Summary: {Gift for Sofie-Spangenburg on Deviantart. Cover art and OC used for gift purposes.} Video games really are a Lombax's favorite pastime, and both Donna and Ratchet are stoked for their weekly gaming session.


_(Okie dokie lokie! Back with some material [finally... after like a month]! Admittedly over the past month I began falling back into the "can't focus on one story" trap, but I'll be ironing that out in due time. But first thing first, **THE COVER ART NOR DONNA THE LOMBAX BELONGS TO ME. THEY BELONG TO SOFIE-SPANGENBERG OF DEVIANTART**. _

_Sofie's birthday was on November 30th, and because she does a lot to support the RaC community and makes wonderful art [seriously, some of her art is so nice to see after a tough day], I decided to make a little bday fic for her to celebrate. It came out on the RaC Amino first, since that's one of the two places Sofie's pretty active, and because that's where I'll publish minimally edited fics first. I wanted to get it out in time for her birthday, but at the same time I had time constraints, so this went through another round of editing before I decided it was ready for here. :]_

 _All in all, if you have the time and want to check out Ratchet and Clank artists on DA, then check out Miss Sofie. She's got a ton of great stuff, and she works exceptionally hard at bettering her work with every new piece. She's got great content, and she's a wonderful person!_

 _And with that, I hope you all enjoy the story! :D)_

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Ratchet and Clank or any of its characters. Donna and the cover art belong to Sofie-Spangenberg of DA, and I only use them for gift purposes to the author (and to give y'all some context). {-Insert witty placeholder here before you hit Publish and don't forget-}**

Friendly Game Night

"So… you got the _stuff_?"

"Heck yeah I do! Take a look…"

Excited hands flew to the stack of holo-games, and a gasp of surprise came from the little blue-haired Lombax. "Oh my gosh, you actually have ' _Fall of Blarg_?!' I've been begging my parents for that game for months! How'd you get it?!"

The other little Lombax gave a toothy grin, one that had a few baby teeth missing but one that about rivaled Veldin's suns in brightness. "What can I say Donna, I'm just that awesome!"

Donna mirrored his toothy grin. "No, you're not Ratchet… cause guess what I got?!"

All arrogance was turned into a mixture of excitement and curiosity in about a half a second. Ratchet lunged for her bag of games and grabbed at the opening flap. "Whatisitwhatisitwhatisit?!"

Donna joined in, and the two almost tore open the little backpack trying to get at the game containers inside. The flap came open, then the games spilled out. Ratchet gasped and leapt back.

"OH MY GOSH YOU HAVE ' _JAK AND DAXTER_?!'"

"You bet it!" Donna screamed back, waving the copy in Ratchet's face.

The two Lombaxes screamed in utter joy as they danced around the pile of their games. "THIS IS GUNNA BE THE BEST GAME NIGHT EVER!" they yelled at the top of their lungs.

A voice drifted up from the lower levels of the garage. It was faint, but the heightened hearing of both the Lombaxes picked it up. "If it's the best game night ever, then you two should probably start playing the games."

"Oh yeah…" Donna said as she and Ratchet paused in their celebratory Chicken Dance. "Thanks mom!" she called back as both Lombaxes tore towards the small holo-vid.

They landed on their knees in front of the holo-screen, and their hands scooped up the game controllers in a practiced motion. The two Lombaxes punched the power buttons on their controllers, and a squee of joy came from Ratchet as the game system picked up both controllers.

Donna turned to Ratchet, her barrette barely holding back her hair from falling over her face. "What game should we play first?!" she asked, excitement painting her words.

Ratchet screwed up his face as the gears in the small Lombax's head whirred. After a moment, he lifted up a finger. "What about ' _Fall of Blarg_?'"

Donna frowned. "But that's a one-player game. I wanna play a two-player game first."

A huff sounded from Ratchet. " _Fiiinnneee_ ," he pushed out while his eyes dramatically rolled, "but then what should we play instead?"

This time Donna screwed up her face. Her eyes closed, and her tiny pink tongue poked out of the side of her mouth. "Hmmm…"

Ratchet stared at her for a minute before getting up and hurrying back over to the pile of games on the floor. As he looked through the boxes, he called back to Donna. "What about ' _Sly_?' I hear it's a sneaky-sneak game and you're good at the sneaky-sneak stuff."

Donna trapped her tongue between her lips and blew a bored raspberry as her mind shifted back to reality. "Nah, I'm not in the mood for sneaky stuff. And I wanted to play a game with two-players."

Ratchet groaned dramatically and tossed the game box back onto the pile. "What about ' _Spiro the Space Moose_?'"

"Nah, that one's got two players but it's a game full of things you gotta collect and that's a total chore."

Grumbles came from Ratchet as he threw the box behind him. Donna turned and caught it as she got up and stepped over to where Ratchet was. The two Lombaxes stared at the games, glaring at the box art, hoping that the answer would come to them.

Donna brightened, and the girl grinned as she grabbed another one of the game boxes. "What about ' _Girl with a Stick_?!' It's two players and has a cool lady hero!"

Ratchet hummed and put a finger to his chin. "I was thinking ' _Jak and Daxter_ …'" He deflated when he saw the puppy dog eyes on Donna's face. The boy groaned as enormous green eyes pleaded her case.

Donna had mastered the puppy-dog eyes.

"Okaaaaay, we'll play ' _Girl with a Stick_.' But we're playing ' _Jak_ ' right after!"

The girl cheered as she leaped up and sprinted back towards the VG-9000. "YES! ThankyouRatchetwe'llplayJakafter!"

Ratchet's ears drooped as he shuffled back to the holo-screen. Donna cracked open the box and fed the disk into the disk-drive as Ratchet plopped back down next to the other controller. "How does your mom put up with you?" he mumbled as he crossed his arms over his chest.

Donna turned back around and strutted two steps before sitting behind her controller. "'Cause my mom loves me!" she remarked as something between a smile and a triumphant smirk grew on her face.

Ratchet blew a raspberry at her. "Nah, it's cause you man-i-polote her emotions with your puppy dog-"

Soaring orchestral music blasted out of the speakers of the holo-screen, and the Lombaxes whipped their heads back to the screen.

A young female, one of a specie they knew to be fictional, appeared with the game text. She stood out over a cliff, staring off onto a gorgeous forest down below. The sky was a soft blue, so soft it resembled the Veldin sky. Off at the other corner of the screen, directly across from The Girl, trees were disturbed and thrown to the side. Behind the music, a roar sounded, and the two Lombaxes' ears twitched as they imagined the vicious beast they would face when they got into the game.

The little pointer arrow blinked at "New Game."

They simultaneously turned to each other, massive, competitive smirks almost splitting their faces as their hands molded to their controllers.

"You ready Donna?" Ratchet asked, the challenge present in his words.

Donna leaned towards Ratchet.

"Born ready."

* * *

"… _Ratchheett…_ "

"I know, I know, I gotta hit the tree that'll push the rock down the cliffside to fall onto the Huntrasaur. This is just hard!"

Donna huffed, her hands falling besides Ratchet's face as she laid her chest over his head. "You said that ten minutes ago! You're taking forever!"

The setting sun bathed the empty Galaxy Burger containers littering the room in a soft orange light, and the two Lombaxes were oblivious to the Sunset Overdrive slushies beside them. The games they had thrown aside at the beginning of the late afternoon were stacked neatly under Ratchet's bed, with ' _Sly_ ' and ' _Jak_ ' laying on Ratchet's bed due to the Lombaxes' request to Donna's mom.

The girl heaved an enormous sigh. "Okay, so head to the right-"

"Oh my gosh Donna, I know what to do."

"Clearly you don't 'cause this is like the millionth time you've died."

The Girl sprinted through the forest as a massive reptilian monster with dozens of legs and six eyes lunged after her. Ratchet mashed the Jump button as the platforms came up, and a growl rattled in his throat as his eyes narrowed.

"Come on," he whispered. "Come on, come on, come on…"

Donna stayed motionless as Ratchet hit the Jump button at the wrong time and watched as The Girl plummeted into a bottomless chasm. "You were supposed to hit the Jump button," she said as Ratchet gave yet another loud groan.

"I can do this!" Ratchet yelled. His hands gripped the controller tightly, so tightly it creaked under the pressure.

The level brightened as The Girl began running again. The Huntrasaur burst out of its cage and tore towards The Girl, trees snapping as it used them to propel itself forward. The first time it had happened, Ratchet and Donna had screamed in terror. Now though…

"You'd think this guy would catch us since he's using the trees as diving boards."

The frown on Ratchet's face couldn't have been deeper. "I know right, like how can The Girl's legs really keep her ahead of this super-fast monster? This is totally bad game design."

The platforms came into view, and Ratchet gave another groan as his finger relaxed over the Jump button. "UGGGGHHH, here's where I die again because this boss is _literally_ impossible!"

His thumb, almost on autopilot, hit the button at all the right times.

The Girl hopped onto every platform, and Ratchet felt hope fill his body again. "Oh my gosh!"

Donna's eyes locked onto the screen, her toes slightly curling as her hands rested on the bases of Ratchet's ears. Anxious whispers filled his large ears. "Come on Ratchet… you can beat this…"

The Girl ran through the next section, crossing another platforming section with almost no effort.

The Lombaxes were so focused on the holo-screen a nuclear bomb wouldn't have dragged their attention away from the game.

The hill came next. Boulders crashed down the rocky cliffside. Ratchet jerked the joysticks and The Girl dodged around the rocks.

The two of them leaned forward as the tree appeared at the top of the mountain. The rock resting just under the tree flashed into view.

Their breathing hitched in their chests, and their mouths dropped open in silent screams.

The Girl finally reached the top. Her staff was drawn, and Ratchet rammed his finger against the sprint button.

He only had fifteen seconds before the Huntrasaur-

The thundering roar blasted through the speakers as Donna cried out, "RATCHET HIT THE TREE!"

The male Lombax screamed in terror as he smacked his thumb against the Hit button.

The staff swung-

A _thunk_ rang, and the rock moved. It barreled towards the Huntrasaur and hit a small ramp. The boulder crashed right into its hideous face. The monster roared in surprise and anger as it fell down the mountainside, disappearing into the forest below.

Screams of utter triumph consumed Ratchet's room as the two Lombaxes leapt up and screamed at the top of their lungs. Donna threw her arms and legs out as she danced wildly, and Ratchet pounded his fists in the air as the little Lombax scratched his throat with shouting. Donna's legs barely missed the slushie cups, and it took almost a full minute before the Lombaxes realized there was a cutscene playing.

"What's that?" The Girl murmured as the Lombaxes turned back towards the screen.

"Wait," Donna asked as The Girl stepped toward the tree. "What is that?"

The two of them quickly resumed their previous positions and stared at the screen in awe.

The ancient marking on the tree that had been hidden by the rock glowed, and the ground underneath The Girl opened up. The earth swallowed her, and The Girl screamed as she plummeted into the mountain.

Donna gasped as she jostled Ratchet's ears. "Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh, what's gunna happen next?!"

"That'll have to wait until tomorrow you two."

The groaning and protesting the Rilgarian got would've made a creature think that the Lombaxes were somehow on their last legs, and that playing the game was the only thing that would keep them alive.

"No buts," Donna's mom said. She went over to Ratchet's bed, Donna's backpack in hand, and began picking out Donna's games from the stack. "Come on Donna," she said softly, "tell Ratchet good-bye. We've got to get home before your curfew."

Donna threw out her arms. "But Moooooom, can't I stay with Ratchet for just a few more minutes?! We've got to see what happens to The Girl! She just got eaten by a mountain!"

Donna's mom continued to pack the games neatly in the bag. "I know sweetheart, but it's getting late, and your bedtime's coming up soon."

Ratchet bit his lip as he looked between Donna and her mother. Come on… he had to think of something…

"Hey… Mrs. Donna's Mom, could Donna have a sleepover with me? That way she can stay with me and still get to bed on time."

Donna latched onto the idea. "Yeah Mom, why don't I stay with Ratchet? I'll be super good, and I promise I won't stay up past my bedtime."

Donna's mom turned and was met with four enormous, pleading puppy dog eyes that would've charmed a Horny Toad right out of its den.

Her mom sighed. After a minute of staring at the two of them, she nodded. "Alright, I'll let Donna stay for the night. She'll need some pajamas, a toothbrush, and some toothpaste, but other than that, she'll have a bath tomorrow when she comes home."

The two children cheered and threw their arms around Donna's mother. The older woman raised her eyebrows and smiled, but hugged the children back. "Okie dokie you two. I'll be back to pick up Donna later tomorrow morning." She looked to Donna. "Donna, be on your best behavior, and please go to bed on time. The last thing you need is your whole sleep schedule to be thrown off."

"I will Mom," Donna chirped as she pulled back.

Her mother turned to Ratchet. "Ratchet, no keeping her up into the night. No 'one more hour,' because the last time you did that Donna slept until four in the afternoon and then spent most of the next night up and awake."

Ratchet gave a salute, clipping his feet together and throwing a hand to his forehead. "Aye-aye, Mrs. Donna's Mom! I'll be good!"

The Rilgarian slowly lifted herself off the ground and dropped Donna's bag back on the floor. "I'll be heading off now. Bye you guys, and have a fun rest of the night!"

Donna and Ratchet waved their arms as Donna's mother stepped down the stairs leading to the main garage. "Bye Mom!" Donna shouted out as her mother disappeared from view.

They dropped their hands.

It took a moment before they turned and looked back at each other, their smiles ever mischievous.

Ratchet silently mouthed 'sleepover,' and suddenly the children high-fived as they whooped with happiness. The clap echoed throughout the room, and as they did one more quick dance session, they whirled back around to face the holo-screen.

The Girl stood idly in a massive, rocky cavern, most of the level dark. A straight path was laid out in front of her, and the controllers begged the Lombaxes to come back and move The Girl through the rest of the game.

Ratchet and Donna bolted back to the controllers and plopped themselves back down in front of the holo-screen.

"Ready Donna?" Ratchet asked as a sprite for Donna popped up on the screen.

The girl smirked as she looked from the game to Ratchet.

"Like I said, I was born ready."

The two Lombaxes plunged into the unknown, ready for what came next.

* * *

 _Yay! Another fic down!_

 _My current projects as of now {"Chains of Villainy" is also on that list} is to write a couple Legend of Zelda fics since I love Breath of the Wild a lot. Most of them are drabbles or short oneshots, so I hope to finish them up real quick with some perseverance and editing. Besides that, I'll be finishing up a few private fics for some friends, working on the raffle winner's story {I held a DA raffle for my followers there}, and generally trying to beta some people's works. Other than all that... that's the plan for Winter Break. I'll be working too, but I'll try and get some more stories out for you guys as soon as I can. :) I've been making it a goal to at least publish something once a month, if not bimonthly, and I'll be sticking to that goal!_

 _Until then, see you guys in the next fic!_

 _XD_


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